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The CareGiver Partnership was granted Patent Pending status for its unique Never Run Out (SM) online shopping process in November 2009 and has now filed a non-provisional patent. The invention addresses consumers’ primary reason for not taking advantage of automatic shipping by e-commerce retailers.

Automatic-shipment programs have been offered by retailers and manufacturers for years, with varying levels of end-user usefulness, thus resulting in limited usefulness. Over the past four years, The CareGiver Partnership carefully researched those consumers who elected not to take advantage of its convenient Never Run Out automatically scheduled delivery service. These insights led to the development of a unique patent-pending solution. This solution applies to any consumer product, commodity or service in any industry where automatic shipment provides a convenience benefit for the end user.
“We learned the primary reason consumers weren’t taking advantage of our Never Run Out service was because they didn’t know how often they should schedule a delivery,” says Lynn Wilson, founder of The CareGiver Partnership. “Since every person’s usage varies and each of the more than 400 SKUs of incontinence products we sell is packaged in different counts, consumers were confused.”

With these consumer insights, The CareGiver Partnership set out to solve the problem by asking pertinent questions, then addressing them programmatically, using an algorithm that precisely matches consumer usage with a specific stock keeping unit. For example, if a person uses three incontinence products per day on average and there are 72 in a case, the tool recommends shipment every 24 days.

This process is applicable to a broad range of products and services, including replenishment of baby diapers, pet foods, industrial cleaning supplies and replacement light bulbs for convention centers, just to name a few.

In particular, the invention is applicable to products, supplies and services that are sold in multiples, with specific multiples forming a single deliverable unit. An example is a package of 20, 30 or 40 diapers, wherein the customer can order any one of the packages and the delivery schedule will vary depending on which is ordered.

The invention pertains to any product or service by providing programmatic tools that calculate the most appropriate delivery sequence or schedule based on combining the quantity of product in a given unit — such as ounces, pounds or pieces — and the current estimated consumption rate per time period.

The process was further enhanced to make it even more convenient for consumers by allowing them to:

Manage modifications to the delivery sequence or schedule, including the delivery interval by calculating actual consumption over X time period. The algorithm will determine an adjusted schedule and automatically modify it for consumers if they desire.

Skip a delivery.

Pause recurring orders for X period of time.

Increase or decrease the quantity delivered.

Modify the product established for recurring delivery.

Cancel future deliveries.

Modify the payment method for recurring deliveries.

Add products to their automatically scheduled delivery plan.

Since implementation, new customers taking advantage of the Never Run Out service has increased 88 percent.

The company has now filed its non-provisional patent for its invention and is in licensing discussions with a range of e-commerce retailers who wish to offer their customers the same online convenience.

Watch this Video: The Incontinence Product Finder

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About The CareGiver Partnership. The CareGiver Partnership helps caregivers and their loved ones with answers to their caregiving questions, including information about home health care products and supplies, from our Wisconsin-based team of Product Specialists who are all current or former caregivers. The company’s Web site provides the largest online library of resources on subjects most important to caregivers — from arthritis to assisted living, and Parkinson’s to prostate cancer — as well as access to more than 3,000 home care products for incontinence, skin care, mobility, home safety and daily living aids. The CareGiver Partnership was founded in 2004 by Lynn Wilson of Neenah, Wisc. Visithttp://www.caregiverpartnership.com to learn more or call 1-800-985-1353.